Solid-state lighting such as LEDs, which is a pivotal, energy-efficient technology for architectural lighting, is set to alter the way buildings will be lit up in the UAE and GCC region as the region’s property owners take note of how effective it is in enhancing the exteriors of buildings.

Speaking on the potential of this new technology, Barry Weinbaum, CEO of the US-based Renaissance Lighting, a pioneering innovator of LED architectural lighting, tells Gulf Construction: “Exterior LED lighting offers a whole new form factor, giving rise to something we call ‘architainment’. For a long time, outdoor lighting has been limited to neon and conventional floodlighting. During the next three to five years, however, we expect to see a noticeable increase in the use of colour throughout the world, due to the added availability of LED RGB technology.
“New lighting technologies mean new opportunities for enhancing the look of any building – even going so far as to provide entertainment-driven branding opportunities for building owners.”
Commenting on the trends in the GCC region, Weinbaum points out that earlier, throughout much of the region, lighting tended to be purchased solely on the basis of price. There appeared to be little consideration as to what that lighting could do to work for the building design.
“Historically, exterior lighting on the façade has been more of an afterthought. Buildings in the GCC region are expensive, intricate and architecturally appealing. However, while a great deal of money was being invested in materials such as granite and marble, very little was spent on lighting. Hence, in these cases, the architectural splendor of a building was somewhat dampened by some very cheap lighting. Some of this lighting is already rusting out, while some of it fails to match the architectural scale of the buildings themselves,” he says.
However, according to Weinbaum, a new trend, involving attractive lighting, is emerging as building owners take note of the role played by exterior lighting in enhancing the architecture and begin to demand better lighting solutions.
“The building movement is not about gaudy excess, but rather about a high-quality, classy look. Building owners in the GCC are working with some of the world’s best architectural firms who are sophisticated and want these structures to be showcases, all of which fits well with solid-state lighting.
“You can do things now with this lighting that are so much different – and better – than ever before. There are so many more options that match the vision of these architects. While superior lighting products are obviously more expensive, there is a lot of lighting out there that’s less expensive.”
In line with the construction boom in the region, the market opportunities for lighting have been increasing significantly, according to Weinbaum. “Of the $1 trillion to $2 trillion worth of projects earmarked over the next five years, lighting is expected to account for 10 per cent of that total. That’s how much potential is really out there for the lighting industry.
“Simultaneously from a lighting perspective, the market is undergoing a transition. Throughout much of the region, people are learning how to move to the next level or the architectural grade. Lighting still is vulnerable to cost-cutting measures. One positive aspect for the region is the government’s focus on long-range economic planning, which takes into account deployment of energy-efficient technologies like solid-state lighting, especially in countries such as the UAE and Qatar.”
Recognising this market potential, Renaissance Lighting has recently established a strategic marketing alliance with Stellatek Solutions and the UAE-based Network Communication ET. The alliance with Stellatek Solutions – a strategic consultancy and implementation service company that focuses on assisting value-added product and services to companies seeking to expand their sales presence in the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia – will introduce Renaissance Lighting’s LED architectural lighting products into the myriad of new construction projects in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Qatar.
So far, Renaissance has executed the Kalima Centre project in Abu Dhabi. Kalima (Arabic for ‘word’) is an ambitious, non-profit initiative funded by a grant from the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage, which funds the translation, publication, and distribution of high-quality works of classic and contemporary writing from other languages into Arabic. The centre is lit by Renaissance Lighting’s solid-state LED downlights.
The company’s solid-state LED technology allows the mixing and blending of multiple LED lights into a single light source with no visible LEDs and no prism effect. In the GCC region and much of the world, the company is deploying its 4-inch and 6-inch LED downlights.
“They are the highest-quality LED recessed products presently available anywhere in the world, each capable of producing more than 16 million colour combinations, including the full range of white light colour temperatures,” he says.
Its unique downlight design, states the company, begins with a circular array of LEDs at the perimeter of an integrating dome inside each fixture. The firm’s optic design combines light uniformly before exiting the luminaire in glare-free fashion. The result is consistent colour production and concealed sources that create smooth, uniform illumination patterns.
A light-sensing feedback system continually monitors and adjusts each luminaire to factory-calibrated colour standards to ensure fixture-to-fixture consistency and light quality throughout the 50,000- to 70,000-hour life of the product. The entire combination of innovative features, according to the company, produces the industry’s purest single light source at attractively lower energy consumption levels.